An attorney representing Minnesota Gophers star forward Dawson Garcia is considering legal action against the NCAA in an effort to grant Garcia with one more year of eligibility.
New broke Monday that Garcia had entered the transfer portal, leading to the assumption that he could look to return to college hoops in 2025-26 if the NBA or other professional basketball ventures don’t come to fruition. However, Garcia has played five years of Division I basketball, so he’s out of eligibility.
To play college basketball in 2025-26, Garcia, who averaged 19.2 points and 7.5 rebounds this past season, would need an exemption from the NCAA. The waiver would be tied to his 2021-22 season at North Carolina that was cut short when he returned to Minnesota to be closer to family dealing with medical concerns.
Darren Heitner, founder of Heitner Legal, announced Tuesday that his agency is considering action against the NCAA on behalf of Garcia.
“The NCAA has failed to adopt and apply uniform, meaningful exceptions to its eligibility rules. It provides waivers to some athletes and denies others in substantially similar situations. We are currently considering bringing a case against the NCAA for Dawson Garcia,” Heitner wrote.
Heitner, a sport law professor at the Florida Levin College of Law and a professor of NIL at the University of Miami School of Law, confirmed to Gophers On SI that Garcia’s case is tied to his 2021-22 season at North Carolina.
Garcia played in 16 games and started 12 for the Tar Heels before leaving the team in January 2022 to return to Minnesota to be closer to family. He grew up in Prior Lake, Minn., where he was a finalist for the Mr. Basketball award in 2020.
He spent his first season of college basketball at Marquette before transferring to North Carolina. Upon returning to Minnesota to be closer to family, he signed with the Gophers and played the last three seasons in maroon and gold.
Garcia’s freshman year at Marquette was cleared from eligibility records because the NCAA granted an extra year of eligibility to all student-athletes who participated during the 2020-21 season, which was disrupted by the COVID pandemic.
If Garcia is granted an exemption, he would instantly become one of the most coveted talents in the transfer portal — and that means he would likely be entertaining offers in excess of $1 million to play in 2025-26. Much like Cam Christie last year, Garcia is reportedly still considering a return to Minnesota if he’s granted another year; this decision to enter the portal just gives him options.
Of course, there are people with opinions on the matter. College basketball insider Jeff Goodman simply wrote, “It’s time,” indicating he thinks Garcia should move on.
Garcia’s 132 career games is far from unprecedented. The NCAA record is 179 games, held by former Iowa guard Jordan Bohannon, who played six seasons for the Hawkeyes while being granted waivers for a medical redshirt and the COVID season.
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